Northern Strike 2018

Two UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters from 2nd Battalion, 135th Alpha Company, Denver, Colo., depart to a refueling point after a long day of training at Northern Strike 18, Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center, Alpena, Mich., Aug. 6, 2018.
Northern Strike 18 is a National Guard Bureau-sponsored exercise uniting service members from many states, multiple service branches and a number of coalition countries during the first three weeks of August 2018 at the Camp Grayling Joint Maneuver Training Center and the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center, both located in northern Michigan and operated by the Michigan National Guard. The accredited Joint National Training Capabilities exercise demonstrates the Michigan National Guard's ability to provide accessible, readiness-building opportunities for military units from all service branches to achieve and sustain proficiency in conducting mission command, air, sea, and ground maneuver integration, together with the synchronization of fires in a joint, multinational, decisive action environment. (Air National Guard photo by Airman 1st Class Tiffany Clark/released)

Infantry Marines with the 1st Battalion, 24th Marine Division from Grand Rapids, Mich., worked as opposing forces during simulated defense procedures and ambushes against Joint Terminal Attack Controllers from the German Army and Air Force teamed with soldiers from the 1-296th Infantry Battalion, Puerto Rico National Guard, at the Carmeuse Calcite Quarry, Rogers City, Mich., Aug. 7, 2018, during Northern Strike 18.
Northern Strike 18 is a National Guard Bureau-sponsored exercise uniting service members from many states, multiple service branches and a number of coalition countries during the first three weeks of August 2018 at the Camp Grayling Joint Maneuver Training Center and the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center, both located in northern Michigan and operated by the Michigan National Guard. The accredited Joint National Training Capabilities exercise demonstrates the Michigan National Guard's ability to provide accessible, readiness-building opportunities for military units from all service branches to achieve and sustain proficiency in conducting mission command, air, sea, and ground maneuver integration, together with the synchronization of fires in a joint, multinational, decisive action environment. (Air National Guard photo by Tech. Sgt. Jason A. Boyd/released)

Exercise TURBO DISTRIBUTION continued this week with units from 123rd Contingency Response Group and 690th Rapid Port Opening Element. Hundreds of Airmen participated in the exercise over the last two weeks. Weather dampened the exercise this week, but our Airman proved resilient and pushed on to complete the exercise. The exercise completed yesterday and was a success. (ANG Photos by Sara Seymour and 1st Lt Andrew Layton/ Released)

Military units from the U.S., U.K., Germany, Poland, Hungary, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia will converge at the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center and at the Camp Grayling Joint Maneuver Training Center, both in northern Michigan, Aug. 4 – 18, for Exercise Northern Strike.

Exercise Northern Strike is a robust military readiness event hosted annually at Michigan National Guard facilities, which, in addition to Alpena CRTC and Camp Grayling JMTC will include the Grayling Air-to-Ground Range, the Carmeuse Calcite Quarry in Rogers City and the former site of K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base in the Upper Peninsula. With approximately 5,000 participating Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors, and Marines, Northern Strike is one of the largest reserve component exercises supported by the U.S. military. Its mission is to maximize the full-spectrum combat readiness of National Guard units through realistic, cost-effective joint fires training in an adaptable environment, with an emphasis on joint and coalition force cooperation.

“Each year, the training opportunities provided by Northern Strike get better and better,” said Col. John Miner, Alpena CRTC commander. “From all four Department of Defense components to our coalition partners, we've not seen another exercise that combines the multi-spectrum, multi-domain, and joint live-fire integration into one exercise like Northern Strike does.”

Alpena CRTC will be the focal point of air operations during the exercise. Fixed wing aircraft scheduled to participate include the A-10 Thunderbolt II, F-16C Fighting Falcon, C-130 Hercules, MQ-9 Reaper, KC-135 Stratotanker, E-8C Joint STARS, Civil Air Patrol (CAP) Cessna 182, RC-26, as well as rotary aircraft including the UH-60 Blackhawk, AH-1W Super Cobra, CH-47 Chinook, and the UH-1Y Venom/Super Huey.
The Northern Strike live-fire exercise involves small arms, mortars, artillery, and aerial munitions at the Camp Grayling range complex and Lake Huron water range, along with simulated-fire exercises at locations such as the Carmeuse Lime and Stone Calcite Quarry in Rogers City, and some coastal waters along Lake Huron, and Mullet Lake in Cheboygan County. Close air support is the primary air mission, with secondary missions including air interdiction, airlift and airdrop, combat search and rescue, air-to-air refueling and intelligence, and both air and ground surveillance and reconnaissance.

“Given the all-season and all-terrain training environment that Northern Michigan provides, Alpena CRTC, is proud to support the air component for the exercise,” said Miner. “Hosting almost 1,500 Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen and nearly 60 aircraft, this will be our biggest and most complex Northern Strike exercise to date.”

In addition to training, Northern Strike also presents a unique opportunity to showcase collaboration between the Michigan National Guard and partner nations, including Latvia. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Michigan National Guard’s partnership with the National Armed Forces of Latvia under the National Guard Bureau’s State Partnership Program (SPP). Latvian personnel will work side-by-side with Michigan National Guard Soldiers and Airmen during air and ground combat capability drills at Alpena and Grayling. Collaboration between Latvian military personnel and airmen from Alpena CRTC has been particularly strong in the fields of fire protection, air traffic control and airfield management, and Joint Terminal Air Control (JTAC) – a capability that allows the direction of combat aircraft engaged in close air support and other air operations from a forward position on the ground.

"Michigan’s partnership with the National Armed Forces of Latvia was the first relationship formed under the SPP in 1993,” said Lt. Col. Dustin Budd, Bilateral Affairs Officer for the Michigan National Guard in Latvia. “Since then, the SPP has grown in size and scope over the decades and pays dividends beyond what anyone could have originally expected. Exercise Northern Strike is a key event in this partnership because it puts American and Latvian service members side-by-side in realistic incident management scenarios that test the skills, trust, and mutual experience they've built over time."
This is the seventh year that the Alpena CRTC has been a host for Exercise Northern Strike. The influx of visiting units provides a perennial boost to the local economy, with an estimated $1.97 million in added revenue each year.

Local media are invited to attend a tour of the exercise area at Alpena CRTC, Aug. 10th from 2 – 5 p.m. Base commander, Col. John Miner, and other key Michigan National Guard leaders will be available to answer questions about Alpena CRTC’s involvement with Exercise Northern Strike. To RSVP for base credentialing, please contact 1st Lt. Andrew Layton.

Camp Grayling is also conducting a media tour, Aug. 14 beginning at 9 a.m. with an exercise overview in Building 353 on post. To RSVP for the Grayling Media Day, please contact Ms. Angela Simpson or Sgt. 1st Class Helen Miller.